(L) Shinigami no Ballad

[Zappster]

Originally Posted by bayoab

Are you telling me you will watch a series even if everyone you know who shares your taste tells you its crap?

Of course I would. Whatever other people think, whether they share my taste in anime or not, I would at least check out the show for a few episodes. If I didn't do that I'd have missed out on quite a few good shows or at the very least shows that I have ended up enjoying in spite of their faults. Recommendations or lack thereof, of shows from people with similar interests are just that. They're not the be all and end all for me in deciding what I watch.

[Kanna]

Originally Posted by bayoab

This is because Triad has been trying to sell people they know on the series and the people aren't liking it.

Correction, we aren't selling you on it (maybe Drago is). We KNOW you and a few others HATE shows like these. Why bother climbing a cliff?

[bayoab]

Originally Posted by Kanna

Correction, we aren't selling you on it (maybe Drago is). We KNOW you and a few others HATE shows like these. Why bother climbing a cliff?

I blame Drago. He always tries to do this. (He has been right a couple of times. *stabs*)

[Maceart]

Second episode has come and gone, and it isn't exactly a stellar anime, but it's decent somewhat. The character designs stay consistent, and the animation is there. Something's missing though... I just can't grasp it.

[lavielove]

I did feel the same way during watching the scene where Misaki was left alone in the classroom and Momo was appearing immediately on the desk ,started lecturing .That scene made Mo Mo to be looked like a stalker instead of a Shinigami.

[Rion]

Originally Posted by LytHka

It is their choice that so many (even Ayu is going to release as soon as the copycat kodachrome finishes her karaoke) are subbing this crappy show now (apart from Kobayashi-san <3 it is crap), wasting their resources when one quality group is pouring their hearts into it (The Triad).

You are so damn right... I wish Ayu would continue with Jigoku Shôjo or other series instead of working on this one.

I'd probably be following this series even if it turns out that I dislike the second episode for the sole reason that Triad does it <3 *g*

[Kaoru Chujo]

I love this series. So far, I think it's of very high quality, in plot, character, animation, character design, and especially its emotional and spiritual aspects. I've rewatched the two eps to see if I've been overestimating it, but I think I've been underestimating it, if anything.

So why do some people seem to hate it so? I think it's a matter of style. From the posts, it seems people think it's sappy and melodramatic: the music, the relationships, the voice-acting. I can see why they feel that, but I think that stylistic approach was taken with a purpose, and that it works.

The director, Mochizuki Tomomi, can obviously tell a story in other ways (YKK, Zettai Shounen) but decided to use the conventions of moe and romance anime to tell this story. He had such a short time to tell each tale that he needed to make his emotional points as strongly and quickly as possible. Music, voice-acting, child characters, direct expressions of affection: these are all tools to this end.

Now, if these conventions put you off, you'd better not watch. This is a romance anime with a spiritual aspect, not either slice-of-life or Bleach2. Some people may have been lured here with a false understanding of what this show is.

The whole point of romance anime is feeling emotions with the characters. That is why I love them. The "sappy" aspects of the anime actually enhance the emotions. If you don't want to feel those emotions -- love, loss, fear, desire -- then the sappiness can't make sense to you. For me, it is very effective.

An emotionless anime like Mushishi seems pointless to me. It actually kind of enrages me to see the esthetic prejudice that calls such a dead, meaningless, repetitive thing a great anime, simply because of its lovely surface and mood, and puts this one down, because it looks like a romantic dorama, and because it has a theme.

The person who called Mushishi masculine was right on. I prefer more feminine anime, where emotions are deeper and/or more fully expressed. ShiniBara is far superior in my eyes, because of the feelings it engenders and because it has such a strong theme: you must live now, because you will certainly die. An anime that helps you really feel that is a great thing.

As Muir Woods did, if you can stand it, just let yourself go and see what this anime can give you. If you always watch anime with a detached, critical, intellectual eye, your emotions cannot be engaged. I think what anime does best is myth and romantic emotions. I'd go elsewhere for more intellectual fare. Or for realism: I think realism is best with real actors. Your mileage may vary.

One thing that struck me as I rewatched was how great the OP animation is. The byplay between Daniel and Momo showed beautifully that Momo is not just a cute kid, but powerful too. The snow was somehow quite moving for me, as was the shinigami walking among the daily crowds: death is right here with us, part of life. And the concept of this ageless white-clad child as a shinigami who weeps for her victims is so perfect. The child, the white, the calm, amused, sorrowful face: all these have deep emotional resonances, if you can let yourself feel them.

[PEDOS_GRANDE]

[18:53] <+Drago|Hachiyoushou14> shinigami no ballad is about god of death loli


Well, that settles that.

[PEDOS_GRANDE]

Originally Posted by Kanna

Correction, we aren't selling you on it (maybe Drago is). We KNOW you and a few others HATE shows like these. Why bother climbing a cliff?

/me throws Kanna off the cliff

Well, at least it has a talking kitty :x

Oh wait, I hate those too.

At least it has good music, i hear.

[bayoab]

Episode 2 was infinitely better than ep 1 (not like that was hard to do), but this series is not worth watching. There were infinitely many bad points to make up for the finitely many good points. The music (what little bit there is) is absolutely horrible which just ruins any of the good scenes. (The music is just terrible. It does not even fit the mood. ) The dialogue from momo is decent, but the other characters sound like they are going around the roulette wheel of cliche. And it goes on and on and on.

[PEDOS_GRANDE]

Originally Posted by bayoab

but the other characters sound like they are going around the roulette wheel of cliche. And it goes on and on and on.

I cry for the dead because they cannot.

[Sorrow-K]

Ok, finally got around to watching the second ep. Not bad. Certainly far better than the first ep; the story was a lot more engrossing and the characters were given the amount of attention and development that was due. For the most part, I find myself agreeing with Humbert^2.

I very much agree that the themes in SnB are totally heavy-handed and spoon fed, but I won't complain too much, because the same can be said about ARIA and Honey & Clover and those two rank among my favourite series from last year. But my biggest problem from the first episode (ie the melodrama) was (almost) no where to be seen in this ep, which I totally approve of. The atmosphere was quite engaging as well, particularly in the first half of the ep. Not so much in the second half though... especially in that scene where the music started playing just after the love confession. I thought that was just so unbelievably tacky. Actually, I'm certain that scene would have benefited from just having no music.

Overall, I'd say if the rest of the episodes are as acceptable as this one was, then this will end up to be a respectable anime. Maybe not brilliant, though, and I'd certainly doubt this will be anywhere near as good as Mushishi.... but Mushishi's appeal is to the intellect, and SnB is certainly not aiming there. I do have one really superficial complaint about this anime, though, and I know it's not going to go away: I hate that cat. It's totally unnecessary, and contributes nothing.

[Rion]

Originally Posted by Kaoru Chujo

An emotionless anime like Mushishi seems pointless to me.

Mushishi made me feel like crying several times, although I did not because I tend to cry about real things rather than anime. Mushishi might seem emotionless to you because you need 'fully expressed feelings' like you said, but to me, the anime is very touching and sad. Maybe you are just not able to feel the subtlety of the anime, whereas I don't think Mushishi is that subtle at all. So please do not say that Mushishi is emotionless, I think a lot of people would disagree with you on that. Just say that the emotions of Mushishi don't reach you.
I also agree with you that Mushishi is 'masculine', but it can be seen as a lot more than mere atmosphere and or "lovely surface" (to put it in your worlds). To some degree, I find it insulting that you put these things as facts while it is merely your own opinion.

I finished watching the second anime and find myself to think exactly like Sorrow-K. It was worth to give the series a second chance ^^

[Pellissier]

I expected some negative opinions, but sure not this level of unappreciation for a series that personally I like, I can understand if someone doesn't like it, but to see it trashed as it is being currently.. I don't know. I mean, Shinigami no Ballad sure has its flaws (one in particular, that I'm gonna explaining in this post), but there's much worse around, it doesn't deserve to be bashed at this level, imho. It really will deter the average user who read here not to watch it. And I would always be for let anyone judge for himself before trashing something away.

Anyway, I personally like this series, my opinion is placed somewhere between these two opinions, coming from people I usually read around here and whom I particularly respect:

Originally Posted by Muir Woods

So in recognizing this, the viewers has two choices. To take the bite and shallow it, or reject it. After all this is said, I willingly choose to take the bite. The taste may not be great, but it's easily digestible.

Originally Posted by Kaoru Chujo

I love this series. So far, I think it's of very high quality, in plot, character, animation, character design, and especially its emotional and spiritual aspects. I've rewatched the two eps to see if I've been overestimating it, but I think I've been underestimating it, if anything.

I'm in the middle. I can concur with Muir Woods on the "take or reject", which ends with a "take". But more than easily digestible, I find the series actually enjoyable.
On the other hand, I can't say I love this series. I like it, it's well done, good animations, good VA for Momo (and not only; I'm quite sure the seiyuu for the female protagonist in episode 2 was Ueda Kana , though I don't see credits around).

But there's a major flaw beyond Shinigami no Ballad though, imho. The series is cold; while the events may be potentially heartwarming, the way they're narrated and delivered is cold. The tragic mood of episode 1 kinda disguised this factor, but episode 2, more serene than the first (serious but with no tragedies in it), clearly presented this flaw. Of course a Shinigami isn't supposed to be kawaii or such, but again, it's not even Momo not to work, I think the anime quite fails in involving the viewer at 100% , with the result of difficultly transmit emotions.
I can think of Hantsuki, it was so simple yet so great in emotion-transmitting, maybe it's there that the anime actually fails, on peoples' judgements, if combined with high expectations too.

And don't ask me what's precisely wrong, because taken as standalone, the single elements are good, but their mixture isn't as good as the singles.

Still, I liked how episode 2 deviated from episode 1 recipe, and makes me hope on new deviations on next episode. This will for sure make things more interesting.

[DaFool]

I'm still sticking with this show, because...

Come on, it's only 6 eps! If I can do it with Jigoku Shoujo, with a lower rate of return per investment, I can certainly do it here.

Ep 2 >> Ep 1 for the following 2 reasons:

1. Ueda Kana
2. Ueda Kana

I'm not going to go into depth because there really isn't which hasn't been blatantly explained in dialogue already.

The momo fanservice is already worth it. Yes, there is fanservice, if you haven't noticed already. It's a good series to watch in between viewings of hentai. (Then again, I also watch Mushishi in between viewings of hentai. Oh, well.)

Whether a show is feminine, masculine, or lesbian I can watch it. (As long as it's not gay). Heck, the force-fed emotions here actually render this show asexual, I can still enjoy and watch it.

[Wandy]

the 2nd episode was better...i hope something like that for future episodes..i still really like the show~

[orion]

I actually liked both episodes equally. It was a nice change to see Momo trying to prevent a death instead of collecting the soul after the death. Surely, there would have been at least one suicide if she hadn't intervened.

I wouldn't describe this series as cold. It just seems that the viewer may not be as emotionally tied to the characters which works since 1 of them may die by the end of the show. (Depending on your consumer, a show with deaths in each episode and not uplifting or positive in some way may not be a huge selling point.) Also, I don't find the music truly sad or haunting which may also contribute to this.

I think that it's a good mix for those who want somber but not tragic viewing.

Could this be reflective of Japanese viewers wanting less tragic titles?

Loads of questions for those who know......

Does anyone know how it's doing in the ratings or what the Japanese viewers are saying?

How far in the manga did we get so far and is it staying faithful to the manga?

[Kaoru Chujo]

Originally Posted by Rion

.... To some degree, I find it insulting that you put these things as facts while it is merely your own opinion....

Everything I write is just my opinion. I often put "in my opinion" in a post too much. This time I just left it out. I'll definitely try to look at more Mushishi -- especially now that I have peeked at the Mushishi thread and seen some of the people who like it. If there are emotions there, I want to feel them. I was probably just expressing myself too strongly because I felt insulted myself, lol. Since you felt insulted, I'll happily forgive your saying that I don't get it because it's too subtle. I avoided saying that about people who don't like ShiniBara, lol.

Originally Posted by Pellissier

...But there's a major flaw beyond Shinigami no Ballad though, imho. The series is cold; while the events may be potentially heartwarming, the way they're narrated and delivered is cold....

I know what you're saying, but I consider what you're describing to be another of the show's strengths. The balance between strong emotion and emotional distance is lovely, as far as I'm concerned. Very appropriate for describing the interaction between humans and a shinigami with heart. Momo's emotional distance, versus her tendency to put her face right up close to the person she's talking to. Her lectures on how to live, and then her going off to weep alone. And I felt that the director did a great job of getting me to care about the characters, despite his having almost no time to do it in.

I don't want to go too far here. This series is not the greatest thing since sliced bread. I just wanted to understand and reply to the excessive (IMO) criticism.

[Pellissier]

Originally Posted by Kaoru Chujo

And I felt that the director did a great job of getting me to care about the characters, despite his having almost no time to do it in.

I concur, I probably didn't express at best with words what I meant to say. I like the characters, just that I don't seem to get attached to them too much.
In this regard, I found a quote by Orion very fitting:

Originally Posted by orion

I wouldn't describe this series as cold. It just seems that the viewer may not be as emotionally tied to the characters which works since 1 of them may die by the end of the show.

This one. It's very true, at least to me. Being aware that a character could die, I start with a bias of not to attach to him/her too much. It's something I always do, in theathrical movies as well.

By the way, I was also more trying to give myself some motivations for the bunch of detractions this show is suffering. But I'm not a detractor. I consider myself totally addicted to Shinigami no Ballad. Not the best show ever, but still very worthy.
Besides, otherwise I wouldn't be keeping Momo as a double flag (av/sig), would I?

Musical note :

March 15th is the day of release for Shinigami no Ballad OP-ED Single:

Specs:

---------------------

Title: Shinigami no Ballad - OP ED Single - no one
Artist: KOY
Street Release Date: March 15, 2006

Tracklist:

1. no one
2. White Messenger
3. no one (Karaoke)
4. White Messenger (Karaoke)

-------------------

Good chance for listening to the full version of the amazing "no one"

[PEDOS_GRANDE]

Originally Posted by DaFool

I'm still sticking with this show, because...

Come on, it's only 6 eps! If I can do it with Jigoku Shoujo, with a lower rate of return per investment, I can certainly do it here.

Ep 2 >> Ep 1 for the following 2 reasons:

1. Ueda Kana
2. Ueda Kana

I'm not going to go into depth because there really isn't which hasn't been blatantly explained in dialogue already.

The momo fanservice is already worth it. Yes, there is fanservice, if you haven't noticed already. It's a good series to watch in between viewings of hentai. (Then again, I also watch Mushishi in between viewings of hentai. Oh, well.)

Whether a show is feminine, masculine, or lesbian I can watch it. (As long as it's not gay). Heck, the force-fed emotions here actually render this show asexual, I can still enjoy and watch it.

Wow. Just wow.